


Sicker Than Sick

by purplepeacock



Category: The Mysterious Benedict Society - Trenton Lee Stewart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:22:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27762943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purplepeacock/pseuds/purplepeacock
Summary: Set in book 2, The Perilous Journey. Describes what happens the first night on the ship, after Kate finds the quickest routes to the bathrooms when Reynie, Sticky and Constance are seasick.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	Sicker Than Sick

The ship gave another lurch, along with Reynie’s stomach. Judging by the pained looks on Sticky and Constance’s faces, they weren’t faring any better. Reynie hoped Kate was on her way back from her bathroom search. If she took much longer, the floor was going to be redecorated soon and it wouldn’t be pretty.

Right on cue, in true Kate fashion, Kate burst through the door to their cabin. Reynie and Sticky halfheartedly greeted her. Constance didn’t even try. 

With the next sway of the ship, Reynie clapped his hand over his mouth and stifled a gag. Kate hadn’t seemed to notice, so Reynie, hand still firmly over his mouth, mumbled, “Kate?”

Mercifully, Kate didn’t need further explanation. She sprang up from her current position sprawled on the floor eating cookies. “Follow me.” Glancing at Sticky, who was breathing shallowly with a hand on his stomach, and Constance, who had sat up with an odd look on her face, she added, “You guys better come too.” Without another word she walked out the door.

Reynie, Sticky and Constance were having a hard time keeping up with Kate while also keeping their dinners down. After several twists and turns, Kate opened a doorknob in front of them. 

At the same moment, the ship tilted nauseatingly, first left and then right. Unable to wait any longer, Reynie pushed ahead of Kate and collapsed, retching, in front of the single toilet. 

Kate, unsure what to do, patted Reynie’s back once. Turning around, she intended to usher Sticky and Constance to their own bathrooms. But hearing Reynie puke was the last straw for them both. They stumbled in, Sticky hunching over the sink and Constance having to stand for her head to reach over the other side of Reynie’s toilet. 

Kate shrugged. Less work for her. She headed back to their room for some undisturbed sleep.

Reynie soon came to the conclusion that three seasick people sharing a bathroom was not wise. It went like this: one of them would start heaving, and the other two, whose stomachs were already balanced precariously on the line between horribly nauseous and actively throwing up, would soon follow suit. Unfortunately, Kate was sound asleep and none of them knew where another bathroom was. Exploring the ship while seasick seemed an even worse idea, so there they were and there they would remain.

A knock at the door interrupted Reynie’s thoughts. “Occupied,” Reynie groaned, while Constance muttered, “Isn’t it obvious?” Sticky had no reply, as he was currently busy vomiting into the sink.

A concerned voice sounded on the other side of the door. “It’s Cannonball. Are you kids okay?” 

“We’re just seasick,” Reynie reassured the man. “Sorry if we disturbed you.”

“May I come in?” Cannonball asked. 

True to the pattern, Reynie and Constance were now puking. Or trying to, anyway. They had thrown up so much already that it was mostly water they had drunk in an attempt to avoid dehydration. 

“Okay,” mumbled Sticky. He was rather embarrassed by the situation and would actually prefer to be left alone, but he was too polite to say so. It was too bad Constance was incapacitated. She would have no problem telling Cannonball to go away.

The door opened and Cannonball stepped in. “Oh dear,” he said quietly. Reynie, still bent over the toilet, realized Cannonball hadn’t been prepared for just how seasick they all were.

The ship swayed violently again, and Sticky, too, had no choice but to resume retching and gagging for all he was worth. Cannonball clucked and moved to rub Sticky’s back. Sticky abandoned his previous notions of embarrassment. His brain was too foggy to care anymore, and the back rub felt nice.

When Sticky was done for the moment, Cannonball turned to Constance and offered her a rubber band. Reynie startled when she took it wordlessly and tied her hair back. Constance, too miserable to be contrary? That was actually concerning.

Reynie didn’t have long to worry before he had to lean over the toilet yet again to cough up a pathetic mixture of water and bile while Cannonball rubbed his back soothingly. 

Afterwards, Cannonball seemed to magically produce three cans of ginger ale. “Try this,” he suggested to the three of them. 

Sticky was willing to try anything at this point. He popped open his can and took a sip. Reynie, seeing Sticky go for it, took a sip of his own. Constance was more wary. “What is this?” she asked. 

“The ginger and carbonation will help settle your stomach,” explained Cannonball.

Constance tentatively tried it, then immediately dropped it, heaving harder than ever. Between gags, she managed to gasp, “That stuff is vile.” Then she added, “And even worse coming back up.”

“Oh dear,” Cannonball remarked again, stroking her hair with one hand and picking up the ginger ale with the other. “I’m sorry, Constance. It was meant to help, but I suppose it can’t if you hate the taste.” He went to the sink, where Sticky, looking pale and clammy, was leaning against it for support but at least not actively vomiting. He filled a glass of water instead and handed it to Constance.

She took it but made no move to drink. Reynie, who had abandoned his ginger ale, understood her sentiment. Even the tiniest bit of water could set off their spinning stomachs at this point. And...back his head went over the toilet. Even thinking about puke was too much, he lamented while he threw up the small amount of ginger ale he had sipped.

Sticky, a sympathetic puker at the best of times, was toast. As he retched painfully, his head dipped down further towards the sink. Cannonball was there in an instant, supporting his head so he didn’t knock himself out on top of everything else. 

Just then, the ship’s constant rocking seemed to stabilize and the sound of wind howling outside died down a little. The kids all gave a sigh of relief. 

“There we go,” said Cannonball jovially. “The storm is ending. Think it’s safe to go back to your cabin?”

“I don’t know.” “Maybe.” “I guess?” Their responses were less than comforting. 

“Hmm.” Cannonball wasn’t sure whether to risk taking them back or let them stay miserably in this bathroom. Then he had an idea. “Here,” he said, opening the cabinet under the sink and pulling out a trash can. “If you need this on the way back, tell me.”

Reynie stood up and meant to reply but a gag came out of nowhere. He dropped back down and retched into the toilet over and over again. Finally, his stomach settled. “Sorry,” he rasped, then cleared his throat. “I feel much better now.”

“Not a problem,” Cannonball assured him. “You think you’re done now?

Reynie nodded. Constance and Sticky had shakily stood up while Reynie was dealing with his surprise puking, so he went to join them. Cannonball looped an arm around Sticky, who was now fully renewed in his embarrassment. “Don’t want you falling and hurting yourself,” Cannonball explained. “You still seem quite dizzy. The other two aren’t swaying as much.”

They made it to their room without further incident. As expected, Kate was sound asleep in a top bunk. Careful not to wake her, the three kids climbed into bed. Cannonball left the trash can with them, “Just in case.” They were asleep before their heads hit their pillows.


End file.
